The House of Representatives has passed a resolution making it imperative to Investigate trade on human organs.
The resolution followed a unanimous adoption of a motion by Rimamnde Kwekum ( PDP Taraba) in Thursday’s plenary.
Moving the motion, Kwekum recalled that about 2 weeks ago, Chinese authorities seized a cargo ship that sailed from Nigeria with 7,200 refrigerated penis.
The lawmaker stated that the organs were found in 36 boxes labelled as plantain on the ship that harboured at the Shanghai Port called Red Market.
According to him, the Chinese General Administration of Customs had alerted that an increasingly large number of armed groups in Africa used organs which were harvested in unsanitary conditions to finance their nefarious activities
Kwekum also recalled that “the media was awash a few years ago with horrifying stories of the harvest of organs of Nigerians and other Africans stranded in Libya for sale in Europe, the Middle East, America and China.
He argued that “the increasing cases of missing persons, ritual killings and trafficking of persons out of the country may be linked to the Red Market which can be attributed to the trafficking of young men and women who end up being victims of organ harvesting
While adding that”the increased banditry, kidnapping and spiralling violence in several parts of the country today make those parts of the country vulnerable and provide safe heavens and ready supply channels for the illicit activities, Kwekum pointed out that the” harvest of organs could only be done by surgeons with the aid of rogue public officials.”
He said that the perpetrators of the illicit trade generated between $ 600 million to $1.2 billion as annual profits.
The Rep observed that there had been efforts made at “curbing the menace of the Red Market by the International Community urging professionals to put an end to the unethical actions where organs of unfortunate victims of economic migrants and human trafficking in Europe and the Middle East are ripped off thereby constituting a gross abuse of the rights to life of those Nigerians.
Convinced that if nothing is done to curb the criminal act, more criminals will set up shops dealing in human organs in Nigeria,. taking advantage of the Insecurity in the country.”he said
The House mandated its Committees on Rights and National Security and Intelligence to Investigate the whole issue concerning the Human Organ Market
The Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase who presided over plenary, mandated the Commitees to report back to the House within 10 weeks for further action.
